arch
adjective/ɑːtʃ/
/ɑːrtʃ/
[usually before noun] (often disapproving)- seeming pleased with yourself because you know more about a situation than other people
- an arch tone of voice
- He tapped the side of his nose in an uncharacteristically arch gesture.
Word Originadjective mid 17th cent.: from arch-, by association with the sense ‘rogue’ in combinations such as arch-scoundrel.Definitions on the go
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arch